NEW YORK -- Some people believe that dancers are meant to be seen and not heard. That idea makes Savion Glover fume.

For the legendary tap star, who returns to the Joyce Theater Tuesday through March 22, the music his feet make is what his art is all about.

"We want to be heard. We want to be amplified,'' he says. "The sound of tap is not clickety clickety tap tap, this monotone thing. The sound of tap has depth. We want you to hear the different highs and lows, the bass, the trebles and the melodies, if you can.''

Glover explains that the mission of his show, "Savion Glover's Solo in Time,'' is about hearing tap nearly unadorned. Irked by the customs of Broadway, where orchestras are amplified and he must struggle to hear the dancers' feet, Glover says he is stripping away as much of the surrounding noise as possible.

As in his recent "Bare Soundz'' program, "Solo in Time'' begins a cappella, as Glover trades rhythms and engages in musical conversation with two long-time associates, dancers Marshall Davis and Cartier Williams (the latter all grown up, for those who remember Williams as the pint-sized hoofer in "Foot Notes'').

Glover switches gears dramatically in the second half, introducing a spare ensemble of bass, percussion, guitar and voice. Here the conversation expands to embrace new partners. Intrigued by the music and the culture of Spanish flamenco, Glover has engaged a flamenco singer, La Conja, to make music with him. Contrasts and similarities between their styles should underscore what each brings to the mix.

While the first half of the program is choreographed, the second half, Glover says, will be improvised each night. He and La Conja have agreed upon what he calls "a form,'' or framework. After that, he has agreed to follow wherever she leads, determined not to make the encounter predictable.

Glover has become known for pairing himself with other musicians: Bobby McFerrin, virtuoso pianist McCoy Tyner, a chamber music ensemble in "Classical Savion.'' He has encountered flamenco artists at international festivals during the past three years, and some have approached him about collaborations. The blending of two percussive dance styles would seem natural, but Glover says his eureka moment came at the Spoleto Festival in Italy, when he convinced a flamenco guitarist to jam with him on stage.

"I told one of the guys, 'Hey, let's do something together. I want to feel that guitar behind me, just for five minutes!' So he came out, and we did something and it was really nice. That led me to believe that it can happen.''

Later, Glover says, he studied Carlos Saura's documentary film "Flamenco'' to learn more about the genre.

"I think it's the same vibe,'' he says of tap and flamenco. "We come from the same area of purity.''